Many mining operations require the use of elevated platforms. These can be in fixed plant, or can be in mobile equipment, such as outside the cabs of diggers, loaders and the like.
To ensure workplace safety, these platforms are generally surrounded by handrails, to prevent a worker from falling from the platform.
In some instances, it is necessary for the handrail to be lowerable or removable, to permit ready access to the platform when desired. To this end, it is known to use hinged handrails which are moveable between an upright position and a lowered position.
Such hinged handrails require hinges which can be securely locked in the upright position, as a safety precaution, yet which can be quickly and easily moved into the lowered position when required. The hinges should be sturdy, damage resistant, and also long-lasting in dusty and potentially wet and even corrosive conditions.
It is also desirable that the hinge can be operated without the risk of entrapment of a worker's fingers.
The present invention seeks to provide a handrail hinge suitable for this purpose.